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Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Efficient Synthesis of All-Carbon Quaternary Centers via the Conjugate Addition of Functionalized Monoorganozinc Bromides
Published on: May 26, 2019
Copper-catalyzed asymmetric conjugate addition with chiral SimplePhos ligands
Laëtitia Palais1, Alexandre Alexakis
1Département de chimie organique Université de Genève, 30 quai Ernest Ansermet, 1211 Geneve 4, Switzerland.
Abstract:
SimplePhos ligands represent a novel class of monodentate chiral ligands based on a chiral amine moiety and flexible diaryl groups on the phosphorous atom. They can be easily prepared by two different pathways and they can be highly functionalised. Herein we report the copper-catalysed asymmetric conjugate addition of diethyl zinc and trialkylaluminium reagents with SimplePhos ligands, which gives high enantioselectivity with cyclic enones, acyclic enones and nitro-olefins, with up to 98.6% ee. Of particular interest is the reaction of trialkylaluminium reagents with a wide range of 3-substituted enones, thus allowing the formation of stereogenic quaternary carbon centres.
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